ZO 



THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



others of the genus, crawling about the twigs 

 and branches of the trees. Being perfectly 

 apterous, they have no difficulty in hiding 

 during the day in the chinks and crevices 

 of the bark, where only a careful search will 

 discover them. 



The male defoliaria is so very variable 

 that scarcely two specimens can be found 

 exactly alike. The base of the fore-wings is 

 light ochreous, followed by a dark irregular 

 band ; the central portion is also light 

 ochreous with a distinct disc spot, then 

 another dark irregular band and the hind 

 margin paler. In some specimens the con- 

 trast between the paler and darker portions 

 of the wing is very marked, the darker 

 marks being nearly black ; other specimens 

 have the paler portions suffused with orange 

 or fuscous, and these specimens rarely have 

 the dark bands contrasting so greatly. From 

 this form it varies by regular gradations to 

 specimens with the wings quite unicolourous. 

 These unicolourous examples are dark dull 

 fuscous. It will be seen then, that as the 

 dark markings become paler, the paler por- 

 tions of the wing become darker, as though 

 there were always a similar amount of 

 colouring matter on the wings, which was 

 either concentrated in the bands or more or 

 less diffused over the wings. Eight varieties, 

 all well marked, were figured on the plate 

 in Vol. iii., referred to above, but none of 

 them are deserving a distinctive name, as 

 every gradation between them may be 

 found. Only the very extreme forms are 

 at all scarce. 



I have never reared the species, and quote 

 the description of the larva from Stainton's 

 Manual :—" Reddish brown on the back; 

 spiracular line broad, yellow, with a red 

 spot on each segment." It feeds on a great 

 variety of trees, and changes to a pupa on 

 or just below the surface. 



I am greatly indebted to Mr. Carter, of 

 Bradford, for assistance in preparing this 

 paper. 



HAGGERSTON 



ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



The Third Pocket-Box Exhibition of this 

 Society was held, as announced in our 

 October number, in their rooms, 10, Brown- 

 low Street, Dalston, on the 15th November, 

 and was undoubtedly the best they have 

 yet held, although confined to insects taken 

 or bred this year. Nearly fifty entomolo- 

 gists exhibited and were present, and many 

 rarities and some curious and interesting 

 varieties were shown. The boxes of Messrs. 

 Boden, Machin, and G. Clarke were speci- 

 ally admired. Mr. Boden's exhibit included 

 fine bred series of S. chrysidiformis and 

 cynipiformis, H auroraria, E. nigrocostana, 

 P abietella, C. ordnania?ia, JU. Boucliardana, 

 infiatella, and S. inconspicudla. Mr Machin's 

 box contained a very fine bred series of 

 G. tmaragdaria, and Mr. G. Clark's con- 

 tained a wonderful series of 0. exulis from 

 Rannock which showed great variation in 

 colour. Among other rarities exhibited 

 were a pair of bred B fuliginaria shown by 

 Mr. Upton ; a fine series of N eentonalis by 

 Mr. Adkin ; A alni,' N. sjparganii, Z con- 

 formis, and N. cilialis by Mr. E. T. Cooke ; 

 E toga* a, B albimacula, S chrysidiformis, 

 &c, by Mr. T. Eedle; Q. smaragdaria was 

 also exhibited by Mr. D. Pratt, along with 

 iV. hisjridaria and a fine variety of T. munda; 

 B. lineata, S. ickneumoni formis, cynipiformis 

 and culicijormis ; T. miniosa, E. irrignata, 

 A cinerea, T. gotliica, &c, &c, by Mr. J. A. 

 Clark. Among many fine varieties, we par- 

 ticularly mention one of the silver form of 

 P. jphlceas, known abroad as Schnidtii, 

 shown by Dr. Seguiria, who had also a 

 curious variety of M. albicillata, the mark- 

 ings of which took the form of the figure 3. 

 Varieties of ca/ja were there, of course. 

 Mr. Goldthwaite showed a very curious one. 

 Mr. J. A. Cooper had three — two abnormally 

 1 dark and one light. He also exhibited the 

 j variety eonversaria, of B. repa/ndata and 



